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Driving Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way

Running 2600 km down Ireland’s rugged west coast, stretching from Donegal to Cork is the newly created Wild Atlantic Way.

Wild Atlantic Way castle

Taking time to stop and take pics all along this beautiful countryside

While these are not exactly new roads, they form part of a new promotion by Ireland Tourism to encourage visitors to hit this unspoilt and raw Atlantic coastline and take in some of the most spectacular scenery you’ll ever encounter, meet locals in various pubs, cafes, shops in villages and towns along the way, and get amongst nature.

Wild Atlantic Way Ireland

The Wild Atlantic Way – all 2600km of it!

The Cliffs of Moher

The Cliffs of Moher

Outdoorsy people will love everything about this coast: hiking, mountain biking, kayaking, surfing, fishing…

Curious travellers will love the little nooks and crannies with cool experiences like watching artists weave Donegal tweed, take a hot seaweed bath on the Sligo coast, see the last European sunset in a cable car, or gather wild food along the Killala shoreline like crabs, seaweed, clams and winkles.

Lovers of history and culture will get to see things that truly are off-the-beaten-track, like the ever-changing weather hitting the historic Clare Island Lighthouse and countless stone walls covered in blackberries and stone houses and castles in various stages of repair – just waiting for a photo.

Wild Atlantic Way

We had to stop and see what this was: a water cistern!

There are signs along the route denoting “Signature Experiences” at Discovery Points (on the pdf download link above) so you know where to stop. Things like where to celebrate the summer solstice, pony riding on the sand to Galway, places to eat, tap your toes to traditional Irish music and all the while, meeting and greeting locals who seldom wee tourists in this part of their world.

Wild Atlantic Way - Galway Bay

Galway is also on the Wild Atlantic Way – Galway Bay

Wild Atlantic Way

Stone walls and stoney beaches

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Hi, I'm Megan Singleton and I'm the word slinger of this travel blog as well as on radio in NZ every Sunday. Former Travel Editor at Yahoo NZ and current freelance writer for a few newspapers and mags from time to time, I set off on this travel writing journey 20 years ago and I've pretty much always got a suitcase half packed (or half un-packed!) I'd love you to join me on Facebook or Twitter and sign up for my newsletters if you want loads of travel tips, advice and deals!